BEIRUT, Lebanon — American-backed forces said on Tuesday that they had seized the northern Syrian city of Raqqa from the Islamic State, a major blow to the militant group, which had long used the city as the de facto capital of its self-declared caliphate.

Celebrations erupted in Raqqa, where residents had lived under the repressive rule of militants who beheaded people for offenses as minor as smoking. Fighters could be seen cheering and firing celebratory gunfire in the streets, according to residents reached by phone and text message.

The United States Central Command stopped short of declaring victory, saying that “more than 90 percent of Raqqa is in S.D.F. control,” a reference to the Syrian Democratic Forces, an American-backed militia group made up of Syrian Kurds and Arabs.

Bette Midler tweeted about Chad, too, but it’s NOT the reason for the Niger debacle. According to reports by CNN, the attack blindsided the Special Forces team, who were vulnerable at the time of the attack. But later officials said the 12-man Green Beret-led team were actually not in the trucks having just completed a meeting with local leaders and were walking back to the unarmored pick-up trucks when the unexpected ambush resulted in a firefight that lasted 30 minutes until French Mirage jets arrived overhead to fly low passes in an attempt to disperse the attackers. http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/18/politics/us-niger-investigation-what-we-know/index.html ISIS from… Read more »

There was also a major setback today is the fight against isis. One of the most effective generals against them had been killed. I think Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead, although if he is alive I bet he will get turned in for the reward. “18 OCTOBER 2017 • 3:09PM A senior Syrian commander and one of President Bashar al-Assad’s most trusted generals has been killed during an operation against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil). Brig Gen Issam Zahreddine, a field commander in the elite Republican Guard, died after a convoy he was travelling in hit a… Read more »